I went to the main kitchen of the Marquis's mansion twice, and even learned how to start a fire from the young boy who was in charge of the fire.

She was exhausted after a whole day of tending the fire. Whether it was stir-frying vegetables, steaming buns, or making soup, Uncle Lu always had her help with the cooking.

However, I've learned how to control large, medium, and small fires.

After that, Lu Qi wouldn't let her go anymore. Had she finished her apprenticeship? No! Was she too stupid and gave up? No!

Lu Qi discovered that Wang Yan had some talent in this area. Wang Yan confidently made a Dongpo pork dish, although Lu Qi was not very satisfied.

But the flavor is just right, and the meat preparation is pretty much perfect.

There are a few minor flaws; I'm not entirely satisfied with the knife skills—the slices aren't evenly thick, and the pieces aren't uniform in size. But overall, it's pretty much as good as it gets.

However, for most street-side cooks, this is already good enough.

And Wang Yan has only been learning for a few days? She's already quite remarkable.

Wang Yan: I'm ashamed! I've been learning for years, not just a few days. Helping with chopping spicy strips and vegetables in the backyard was a frequent occurrence; I even practiced my knife skills with Aunt Sun.

Lu Qi was overjoyed. It turned out that his master's cooking skills had been passed down to his grandchildren. He then assigned Wang Yan a task.

Then, during his holidays each ten days, he would go to see Wang Yan and personally guide her, gradually refining her cooking skills.

If Lu Qi herself is too busy, she will ask her son to tutor her younger sister during his holidays.

Lu Qi's three sons work as head chefs in the restaurant owned by the Marquis's family.

She is also quite capable in cooking, and could easily teach Wang Yan now.

Moreover, they have more holidays because there are many chefs in the restaurant, so they have more time to rest.

Wang Yan now practices making a new dish every ten days, including lamb, pig's head, and even beef.

A dish can be braised, roasted, or fried. You have to master it in ten days, like taking an exam, with a major test every ten days.

collapse!

She learned three dishes in a month, which was barely passable. She'll have to come back and practice more after the New Year. But she's still gained a lot.

Now! She can finally rest. It's not because of the busy New Year that Uncle Lu and Brother Lu won't come to teach her.

Uncle Lu is really busy, but Brother Lu can still find some free time.

Wang Yan ran away on her own; she, Aunt Wang, and Sister Ying were going to go south for a trip.

"Mom, let's set off the day after tomorrow. If we don't go now, the river will freeze over after a snowfall, and we won't be able to take the boat."

Fatty Wang is at the Marquis's residence and won't be returning from Wang Xing Academy. He'll be taking the exam after the New Year.

Wang Yan and her two friends each packed a small bundle and went to Lin'an City for a vacation.

We were on a passenger ship, and the one we chose was a bit larger, capable of accommodating over a hundred passengers.

The windows were built according to the style of houses on land, with windows on all four sides, and they ordered rooms with beds on the upper floor.

Aunt Wang and her family booked a four-person room, but only three people stayed there.

After entering, they laid out the bed sheets they had made themselves, as requested by Wang Yan. Wang Yan had also ordered three "quilt covers" from the embroidery shop in advance.

Unlike modern duvet covers that can be easily removed and washed with a zipper, this one requires needle and thread to sew up the opening.

Aunt Wang and Wang Ying were sewing quilt covers inside the house, and Wang Yan was helping them thread the needle and stretch out the quilt.

As Aunt Wang sewed the quilt, she glanced at her and said, "Shouldn't you learn some needlework too?"

Wang Yan retorted, "I'm going to be a cook, not a seamstress!"

Aunt Wang: "...Alright then!"

After finishing sewing the quilt, a few people went out for a walk to observe the passenger ship. There were canopies at the bow and stern, which could not only shelter them from the wind and rain, but also provide a place to sit and enjoy the scenery.

You can also cook there. If you need to do laundry or cook, go to the stern of the boat.

If you want to enjoy the scenery, you can go to the bow of the boat. There are not only sheds there, but also chairs.

Wang Yan has never been on a cruise ship in modern times, but ancient passenger ships must have been very comfortable to travel on.

Wang Yan and Wang Ying had only taken a small boat ride. They boarded the boat in the late afternoon and went to Ma Xing Street to eat a serving of fried liver sandwiches.

This dish involves cutting lotus root or bamboo shoots into thick chunks, making a slit in the middle, and stuffing them with liver or meat. Then, it's coated in batter and deep-fried.

The inner layer was tender and delicious, while the outer layer was crisp and refreshing. Served with blood pudding, the three of them finished their meal and wiped their mouths.

Then we went to the place selling steamed buns and bought two packs to eat on the boat.

So at this moment, the two sisters each carried a stool and sat at the bow of the boat to enjoy the scenery. The night was still, the wind was gentle, the river was calm, and the moon was bright, creating a unique and charming atmosphere.

Then, less than fifteen minutes later, the two of them got up and went back inside. The wind was too cold and gave them headaches.

The steamed bun I'm holding is filled with a whole lion's head meatball.

Now it's chilly in the wind, and the lard on top has solidified into white lumps.

Aunt Wang glared at the two of them, then took the steamed buns back, put them on a plate, and took them to the boat's kitchen. She spent ten coins to buy a pot of tea, and also heated up the steamed buns and brought them over for dinner (or late-night snack?).

It was already completely dark outside, but Wang Yan and her companion still couldn't sleep. They would sit in their cabin and open the window to peer out at the view.

They ate steamed buns with hot tea. After finishing their meal, they watched the ripples created by the boats moving on the water.

Aunt Wang went up and pinched the two girls twice. "If you dare to stick half your body out to look at the scenery again, just wait and see! I'll give you a good beating!"

"Hurry up and make the bed, get in there and go to sleep!"

I thought I wouldn't be able to sleep after getting into bed, but to my surprise, I fell into a sweet dream very soon after closing my eyes.

The next day, after washing up, I bought a meal from the ship: millet porridge with a pork pancreas flatbread (meat pie). It didn't taste very good.

They weren't as good as the freshly baked, crispy flatbreads they bought from the stalls.

He said it was made fresh, but it was watery and tasteless.

The family in the next cabin was five people: a couple with three children—two boys and a girl.

The two boys looked to be around ten years old, while the girl looked only four or five.

The girl in their family gets seasick; she walks unsteadily and can't eat or even drink water.

Wang Yan remembered that she had some candied plums with her, so she handed over a packet.

The adults in that family quickly thanked them and gave them two more packets of fried dough.

"Thank you, sister. Our two sons, Dazhu and Erzhu, are older and used to traveling by boat with us. This is the first time for the younger one."

I only bought a bag of pickled plums, but I didn't expect to get seasick so badly.

Wang Yan smiled and said, "Maybe we'll be fine after walking for another two days. Let my little sister suck on one first."

After the woman took it, she immediately gave one to the little girl to suck on.

………………………………………………

Two more days passed, and Wang Yan was so sick of the food on the ship that she almost threw up. It was so awful!

But the only dry food his family brought was lion's head steamed buns, which they had already finished.

Today we finally managed to stop at a port. A group of people left, and then another group came on.

A line of people stood along the shore, selling fragrant drinks, fruits, candies, vegetables, and meat.

Wang Yan immediately perked up and went downstairs to buy two heads of white cabbage, a pound of meat, a palm-sized jar of pickled mustard greens, two pounds of fresh noodles, and about ten large steamed buns filled with syrup.

There were also two old ladies selling crab roe oil there, half a tael of silver for a jar. This was a good thing; it was delicious with rice or noodles.

When I got back, I made a spicy and sour cabbage dish. I even bought some vinegar from a roadside stall by the river using my teacup.

I made another spicy stir-fried pork slices, and the aroma was irresistible. I didn't share the pork slices with the nearby diners.

However, they bought extra cabbage and stir-fried a whole head, sharing some with all the passengers and boatmen who came over after smelling the spiciness.

I cooked a pot of hot noodle soup, and then mixed it with cabbage and meat as toppings. The whole family slurped it down with relish.

After finishing the meal, I picked up the perilla tea I had bought and drank it in big gulps, thoroughly enjoying my meal!

The boat stopped for about an hour before setting sail again.

That jar of pickled mustard greens and crab roe oil came in very handy.

In the second half, after finishing the vegetables and meat, cook some noodles, add a chopstick of stir-fried mustard greens, and then scoop a spoonful of crab roe oil and mix it all together.

Or you can go directly to the boat and buy a bowl of porridge to eat with the steamed buns and side dishes you bought.

It saves money and tastes good, so you won't suffer for your taste buds.

Thirteen days later, the passenger ship arrived in Lin'an. It saved five days compared to traveling by carriage and a month compared to walking.

After folding their own quilt covers and sheets and packing them into bundles, Aunt Wang and the other two followed the others and disembarked from the boat.

Upon arrival, the first thing to do was to find an inn, and we chose Kelaixuan, one of the best in the area.

She chose a double room, which cost one or three taels of silver a day, but even that didn't satisfy Granny Wang.

"Why not find a cheaper inn, or like I said, find a family to rent from for half a month? That would save a lot of money!"

"Oh, Mother, stop nagging. What you said is fine, but there's just one thing: is it as safe as Kexuanlou?"

Aunt Wang fell silent.

Wang Yan quickly went over to help her unload her bag, "Besides, the rooms at this price include two buckets of hot water delivered every day! Wouldn't that save us some money on washing up?"

It's also near this commercial street, so it's so convenient for us to go shopping, eat, and have fun!

That's true. Aunt Wang was completely convinced, and the double room beds were quite large, perhaps designed for families traveling with young children.

Wang Yan and Wang Ying can rest on the same bed; they just need to pay a deposit to the shop and have an extra blanket delivered.

After putting their things down, the group took turns taking a shower. Only two buckets of hot water were provided; any more would cost 30 yuan per bucket, which was still considered a cheap price.

Aunt Wang was speechless and no longer cared about the money. "Fine, fine, I'll spend it!"

After washing up, the group went out shopping.